The In Between Series - Just A Simple Background Check
by NeedtoKnow
Summary: The wonderful folks who wrote SMK left a lot of holes in between episodes. I decided it would be fun to create a Series that will fit a story "in between" each of the episodes. For the time in between episode 1 and 2, the most noticeable thing missing was how Amanda got the paperwork to fill out her profile for the background check. Here is that missing story. I hope you enjoy it.
1. Chapter 1 - Rain, Rain, Go Away

**Disclaimer - "Scarecrow and Mrs. King" are copyrighted to Warner Brothers and Shoot the Moon Productions. This story is for entertainment only. I will not make any money off it but do hope that at least some people will enjoy it. The Characters are not mine, I only took them out to play with them for awhile so they could help me tell the story. All the credit goes to Bruce and Kate for portraying these wonderful characters so well that so many of us still love them so much today. The additional characters and this story are mine.  
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 **Chapter 1 - Rain, Rain, Go Away**

It had been raining for several days now and he was just tired of it. The weatherman had said it was supposed to rain but not like this. Gloomy days always put him in a bad mood. Billy certainly wasn't helping either. What difference did it make if he had a partner or not? The other agents mostly liked working with him unless of course he was in a foul mood. He had always been able to find backup when he needed it, he didn't need a steady partner, and he sure didn't want one. After Eric's death, he preferred to work alone. Thinking back though, if he had had a partner at that party, maybe he could have gotten the package away easier and stopped the bad guys from following him. Having a partner to watch your tail had its benefits. In the end, he had gone without any help that night and it had forced him to put a civilian's life in jeopardy. He did feel bad about that but he never expected Billy to offer her a chance to help the agency out. He admitted to himself that if he had had a real partner that night, none of this would have ever happened.

Since that day in Billy's office when Amanda had explained about flying the helicopter, Billy hadn't left Lee alone. He insisted that Lee meet with Amanda and give her the paperwork she would need to fill out so that they could do the background checks on her. Lee rolled his eyes and said "Bill-Y! You can't be serious! She got lucky with figuring out about Mrs. Welch. That sort of thing happens once in a lifetime."

Billy replied "Well Lee, I think she has spunk and she might make you slow down and help keep you out of trouble. Now I want you to go meet her and give her the paperwork so we can begin her background checks. And Lee; that is an order!"

Lee sighed and said "Fine but I don't have to like it."

After leaving Billy's office, Lee went to his desk in the Bullpen and sat down to think. He just couldn't figure out any way out of this so he finally picked up the phone and called Amanda's house. When she picked up the phone she heard "Can you meet me in an hour?"

"Let me guess who this is. Let me see, you can't be the mailman because he doesn't have my phone number and you can't be Dean because he would say hello first. Oh yeah, this must be Lee?"

"Sorry, hello Amanda, can you meet me in an hour?"

"Why?"

"It was Billy's idea. He wanted me to meet you so I could go over the paperwork you need to fill out so you can work for the agency. You know, the usual authorization forms so we can check your background, your financial history and any criminal activity you have had. But hey; if you have changed your mind, I'll just let Billy know."

"WAIT a minute Buster. I never said I wouldn't meet you. Where do you want to meet?"

"Well okay then, how about if we meet at the Lincoln Memorial."

"That will be fine. I'm leaving now and should be there in 30 minutes."

Lee sighed "Okay, I'll see you in 30 minutes. Goodbye"

"Bye Lee"

Amanda was excited. When she was younger, she used to daydream about spies and think that it would be so exciting to be involved in espionage. Of course those were dreams and one never expected them to come true though she still loved reading romantic spy novels. Now look at her, not only did she get to be a part of a case where she helped catch the bad guys, but she was being given an opportunity to continue working for the agency. She would never have believed it would happen to her. It had been scary but thrilling to see Lee all tied up and being pushed into that helicopter. She knew she had to save him. She had no idea that she was going to have to fly a helicopter though. Imagine, Amanda King flying a helicopter. Her Mother sure wouldn't believe her if she told her. But Amanda knew she could never tell her Mother. She could never tell anyone. It was definitely one of the drawbacks. In this line of duty, you could never tell anyone what you did. You had to just be proud that you helped your country and keep it to yourself. She could do it though, she knew she could. It was important to make the world a little safer for her 2 sons so she was eager to help out if she could.

Amanda put on her coat, grabbed her umbrella and headed to D.C. still wrapped up in her thoughts. She wondered what kind of work she would be asked to do at the agency if they hired her. She didn't worry about passing a background check because she knew that she had always led a pretty simple life and she didn't have any secrets. She was hoping the checks wouldn't take long though because she needed a job and this seemed to be a perfect fit.

The rain had continued pretty steadily and was making travel a little slick from all the wet roads. As Amanda neared the Memorial, she noticed the car in front of her was driving erratically. At first, Amanda thought it was just because of the roads but something just didn't seem right so she started observing the occupants. It appeared that the person in the passenger seat kept trying to take control of the steering wheel. Soon Amanda was watching the car more than the road as she realized that the passenger's hands were bound together. What should she do? She could only tell that it looked like it was a woman who was bound and a man who was driving. Amanda decided that she had to follow the car until she could figure out how to alert the authorities that something was wrong. As they neared downtown DC, the car suddenly veered off on a side road and headed out to some old warehouse buildings. Amanda decided she had no choice but to follow the car. It soon pulled into the parking lot in front of a very run down old Mill building. Amanda slowed her car and watched from a distance as the other car pulled into an open Garage doorway. As soon as the car was safely inside, the door slowly descended and shut. Amanda wondered what she should do. In the end, she decided she needed to tell Lee about this so she slowly backed up and headed to the Memorial.

The rain tapered off as she exited her car but she still grabbed her umbrella just in case. As she began walking to the Memorial, she could see Lee pacing and running his hand through his hair. She went as quickly as she could to him and said "LEE, you have to come quick! Someone is in trouble and needs your help!"

"Oh Amanda, it is okay that you were late. I'm late all the time. You don't have to make up a story as an excuse."

"No, you don't understand. I just watched what looked to be a kidnapping."

"So you saw someone grab someone?"

"Well no, I didn't actually see the kidnapping, but the woman was all tied up in the front seat of a car"

"Tied up? Ummm, Amanda, that doesn't really mean it was a kidnapping. Some people enjoy playing games like this. Chances are that you just saw some sort of innocent fantasy being played out by two lovers."

Amanda blushed and said "Lee, that's awful! No I know it was more than that because she kept trying to grab the wheel and the car was going all over the road. I doubt she would do that if she wanted to be with him. Please, can I take you to where he brought her?"

Lee looked at his watch and saw that he still had a couple of hours before his next meeting so he sighed and said "okay, we'll take my car."

Amanda directed him to the old warehouse and he pulled the car over and out of sight. "So this is where the car went?"

"Yes, right inside the garage where the door is now shut."

"Okay, Amanda. I want you to wait in the car and I'm going to go take a look around and see if I can see anything."

"Thanks Lee. I'll wait right here."

Suddenly it began pouring again just as Lee got out. Amanda offered him her umbrella but he pulled his jacket hood up over his head and waved her off. She watched as he walked to the warehouse and began looking into the windows. She could see that his hand was resting on the gun that he had hidden under his coat. She wondered if he could see the car and if he could see the poor woman who appeared to have been kidnapped.

Lee, meanwhile, couldn't believe this was happening. He had just wanted to give the paperwork to Amanda, make sure she didn't have any questions and then go have a nice long lunch while he waited for his 2pm meeting with one of his contacts. Instead, Amanda had convinced him to go on this wild goose chase. It was okay though because when it turned out to be a waste of time, it would give him more ammunition to convince Billy that she just got lucky the first time out and was just going to keep living this fantasy world and waste their times with things she thought she saw that actually were all innocent. He had gotten out of the car just as the rain started again and he knew on top of everything else, he was going to get soaked. She offered him an umbrella but he wanted to make sure she felt guilty about putting him through all of this for nothing so he had refused it. As he neared the warehouse, he could definitely hear some noises inside which meant that this building, which should have been empty, was actually being used for something. He peered into the first window and saw a car. When he looked into the second window, he was shocked to see a young woman totally bound up sitting in a chair. No one was near her as they were too busy looking at something in another part of the warehouse. Lee observed that the woman appeared to be in her 20's, was nice looking and looked scared to death. She also seemed to be unharmed at the moment. So Amanda had been right. He shook his head as he thought about it. His hand immediately reached to feel his gun and he kept it there as a kind of security blanket. The rain continued to pour on him as he tried to figure out what was going on and how many people were involved. He could see two men in the downstairs level but wasn't sure who was upstairs. His head screamed to go get backup but he could see that the men were starting to prepare to leave and he knew he didn't have much time. Lee crept to a side door and found it unlocked. He slowly began turning the knob hoping to surprise them.

In the meantime, Amanda sat out in the car watching all of this from a distance. She wasn't sure what he had found but she saw him slowly move to a side door and he made his way into the building. It was driving her crazy to stay in the car. She knew she didn't have any training and she likely would be no use to him but her curiosity got the better of her and soon she decided she had to get out and check out the situation. She followed the same path that Lee had taken and even started to look into the first window. That was when she heard the gunfire. Amanda ducked under the window and held her breath. Six more shots were fired and she heard the woman scream and then there was silence. Meanwhile, the garage door suddenly opened and the car came flying out and sped back down towards the DC area. Amanda could see 2 men in the car but couldn't tell if anyone else was with them or not. She ran over to the garage door and looked inside. The woman was bound to a chair in the back and then she saw that Lee was lying in a heap on the floor near her.

In looking back, Lee couldn't believe how stupid he had been. The men had just finished piling money into a suitcase and one of them had walked to the car to set the case down in the backseat. Lee decided it was time to make his presence known so he had simply said "hi". The man closest to him pulled out his revolver and shot at him. Lee dived behind a barrel and returned gunfire but the men had already gotten behind some crates to use as protection. Lee yelled out that he was a Federal Agent and they should give themselves up only to hear them laugh at him. They then shot in his general direction as they jumped into the car and took off. The final shot managed to ricochet off a piece of metal and hit him in the thigh. His last memory was hearing the woman scream as the shock and pain threw him to the floor which is where he was when Amanda found him.

She ran to Lee first and checked to see if he was alive. She was so relieved to feel a pulse and hear his heart beating. There was blood on his jeans but not near any vital organs. He seemed to be okay, just knocked unconscious. She knew she needed to call him an ambulance though but first she ran over to the hostage to untie her. The woman looked scared as Amanda approached her but Amanda smiled as cheerily as she could and said "Let me untie those." She gratefully held out her hands so Amanda could. After she was untied, the woman asked her how they had found her. Amanda replied "My car was behind the car you were in and I could see you trying to take control of the steering wheel and saw that you were tired up. I followed you here and then went and got Lee and convinced him to come with me. I'm glad I did." She smiled at the woman. "What is your name?"

The woman smiled back and said "My friends call me Rita."

"Okay Rita, my friends call me Amanda." Amanda offered Rita another encouraging smile. "I have to call an ambulance for Lee. Can you wait right here?"

"Yes, I'll tend to him" she answered.

Amanda drove to the closet pay phone and first called for an ambulance and then called the agency. She tried to get a line directly to Billy's office but the person who answered the phone played dumb and refused to admit that she knew anyone by the name of Billy. Amanda realized that she needed to find out what codes she needed in order to get by this phone operator in the future. For now, she left a message saying simply that Scarecrow had been shot while trying to rescue a hostage and that Amanda was the one leaving the message. She had no idea if he would actually get the message or not.

When Amanda returned to the warehouse, Rita was kneeling beside Lee who was just waking up. Amanda rushed to Lee's side and asked him how he felt. He looked at her and said "Like I have been shot." Amanda shook her head and said that the ambulance was on the way and that she had left a message for Billy.

"Thank you for saving my life." Rita told him. At this point, Amanda's curiosity got the better of her and she asked Rita "What did those men want with you anyway?"

Rita sighed and said "They were hoping to get to my dad through me. They had been paid a large sum of money to kidnap me so they could convince my father to take my place. He is usually surrounded by so much security that they knew they couldn't just grab him. Unfortunately Dad never thought about keeping me safe. Once Dad agreed to come take my place, they were supposed to get even more money."

"Oh my gosh, why would they want to do that?" Amanda asked.

"My father is a top scientist in the NASA space exploration department. He helped design the new F-15 jet aircraft that has an advanced, digitally controlled engine which improves the operability and performance of the engine. This engine is said to achieve stall-free performance, air start capability, and an increase of 10,000 feet of altitude in afterburner capability. This jet is going to help us so much and so of course the KGB wants it. These people would become very rich if they could detain my father and ship both him and the designs for this jet back to Moscow."

Lee was fully awake by now and listening to all of this in amazement. How did Amanda manage to find this kind of trouble? He ran his hand through his hair and hoped the ambulance would hurry up because he obviously had a lot to worry about now. Thankfully right at that moment it did along with an agency car. Amanda went out to talk to the agent that arrived and told him the situation and asked if he could bring Rita back to the agency. She told the agent that she would go with Lee to the hospital and that she was sure Lee would be in touch with Billy in a few hours.


	2. Chapter 2 - So Much for a Long Lunch

**Chapter 2 - So Much for a Long Lunch**

Meanwhile the two men had gotten away and were an hour outside the city before they pulled off to figure out a new game plan. How did things go so wrong? No one knew anything about the kidnapping except them and they sure hadn't told anyone. Somehow the Feds had found out and even found out where they had intended to hide her until they could make the trade. They just couldn't figure out how it was possible. In any case, they knew they were in trouble now. Their contact was going to want to know that everything was all set for the next stage of the plan and they were going to have to tell him what happened. They had already received $25,000 for their troubles but had been promised a million dollars once they delivered the girl's father. Someone was not going to be happy that they had failed and they were going to want their money back. That person might also want to kill them.

The men had pulled off at a local Doughnut shop and they both began pacing in the parking lot as they tried to figure out how to take back control of the situation. They knew that one of the bullets had hit the Fed so the only chance they had was to find him and make him talk. They decided that the car they had already stolen needed to be dumped and new one acquired. Just about that time, a Toyota Celica had pulled in and the occupant had entered the shop to get his order. They quickly slid into the vacated car, hot wired it and were on their way. They just had to figure out which hospital he would be taken to. It only made sense that it would be the one closest to the area so they headed to that one first. As luck would have it, they arrived at the ER parking lot just as the ambulance arrived. They watched as the attendants unloaded Lee from the back and Amanda followed after him. They silently gave each a knowing look and Bryon walked in behind them while Dennis headed to the front desk to create a distraction.

Meanwhile Lee was arguing with Amanda the whole time. "Amanda, I'm fine. They just need to stitch me up and then I'm out of here."

"I really think you should stay overnight Lee. Your head hit that concrete floor pretty hard. You could have a concussion."

" - I do not need to stay the night. It is just a flesh wound on my thigh. My head is fine. I will be good as new once they clean up my thigh and then I can get out of here and try to figure this mess out."

"Okay, well I will go with you and help you."

"No"

"Yes"

"NO'

"Yes, you need me Lee. I even got the license plate number of the car and I got a really good look at both of them."

"Great, then you need to go back to the agency and help one of the agency artist draw them so we can release the pictures. In the meantime, please get that plate number to Billy so he can track down the car. You are right Amanda, that is very helpful but you don't need to come with me. I'm perfectly capable of doing the leg work on my own."

"Doesn't look like it since you are now in the hospital."

Lee just stared at Amanda with his mouth open. How did she do this? She always seemed to be able to make him speechless but worse yet, she made him crazy. At that moment, they arrived at the examining room and Amanda was asked to stay in the waiting room.

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The agent had brought Rita back to the agency. After getting a guest pass from Mrs. Marsden, she was escorted to the Bullpen where Billy met her at the double glassed doors. He offered her a cup of coffee and then escorted her into his office. Once she was seated, she faced Billy and said "So what happens now?"

Billy responded "Did you recognize either of the two men?"

"No, but I did hear their names. The driver was named Bryon and his partner was Dennis. I didn't hear them mention any last names though."

"Do you think you could help a crime artist recreate them?"

"I doubt it, I was too scared and didn't think to look more closely at them. I think that nice lady Amanda who saved me might be able to though. I couldn't believe she noticed me fighting with Bryon in the car and realized that I had been kidnapped. I really owe her my life right now."

Billy smiled as he thought again about how lucky the agency was to have found Mrs. King. He knew that Lee wasn't ready to admit that she was an asset but at this rate, she was proving herself once again and the agency hadn't even formally hired her.

"I'm sure Amanda will be in shortly. I heard she went with Lee to the hospital. In the meantime, we are going to put you up in a safe house with guards. We have alerted your father and have added security for him also. One of my agents will drive you to where you will be staying. Do you need anything from your house? Do you need to let anyone know that you will be away?"

"No, I actually was heading out on vacation when this all happened. They grabbed me at the bus station. If we could swing by there, I'm sure I could grab my luggage but no one is expecting me back for a week. Thanks for all your help Mr. Melrose."

"Please call me Billy, Rita. We'll talk again soon." He said with a smile hoping to encourage her not to be scared. She smiled back and then walked out of his office and followed the agent who would take her to the safe house. "


	3. Chapter 3 - Learn to Lock Doors

**Chapter 3 – Locking Doors, Beginner's Course 101**

The men had slipped into the waiting room where Amanda was waiting for Lee. When they saw her, they quickly ducked their heads and walked back out in the hallway to talk.

"Why is she here, this is getting too complicated!" said Dennis

"Look, we need to get to that guy. I wonder if the hospital intends to keep him. I don't think the bullet did much damage but maybe it did. I'm going to go find something else to wear and see what I can find out. I'll be back. Maybe you should go back out to the car for now. Keep an eye out though in case someone notices it is a stolen car." Bryon said quietly.

"Okay, but hurry up. This is making me nervous."

It turned out that Lee did have a slight concussion so the doctor decided he needed to stay a few hours for observation. Lee was not happy and made sure everyone around him knew it. The bullet had only grazed his thigh causing more pain than actual damage so that was a quick fix. The doctor told his staff to move Lee to the 3rd floor and if all was okay, they would release him later that afternoon. In the meantime, the Doctor went out to speak to Amanda. He told her what their intentions were and suggested that she come back to pick him up in 3 hours. After hearing how unbearable he was being, Amanda decided she should go to the agency with the information she had rather than having to deal with his mood. She took a cab to get her car from where she had parked it earlier that day and then continued on to the agency.

When she arrived at the agency, Billy looked happy to see her. She shared the license plate number of the car with him and then he sat her up with an artist where she was able to help create very lifelike creations of both men. Billy sent those pictures out over the wire immediately and thanked her for her help. By that time, he had already found out that the car they had used had been stolen and was deserted at a Donut shop outside of town. That meant that they likely had stolen a different car to replace it. Billy told Amanda to be careful but agreed that she could go pick up Lee and bring him back to the agency. She grabbed her purse and headed out.

Lee was sleeping when the door opened and a man dressed in doctor's scrubs stepped into the room. The man quietly went over to Lee and took a needle out of his pocket and plunged the contents into Lee's arm. He then went out to the hallway and retrieved a wheelchair and placed Lee into it. No one questioned what he was doing and he was able to quietly push him outside to where his partner Dennis was waiting. They quickly loaded Lee into the car, got in and drove off leaving the wheelchair out in the parking lot. They now had to figure out where they could bring him so they could get him to talk.

Just prior to this new kidnapping, Amanda arrived back at the hospital and made her way to the 3rd floor. When she arrived at Lee's room, she was surprised to see it empty but Lee's Clothes were still in the hospital bag in the closet. She ran out to the Nurse's station and asked what happened to Lee. The nurse commented that a doctor had taken him by wheelchair somewhere. She asked if she knew where and the nurse looked at her and then said "You know, it is strange that a doctor came to take him anywhere. We hadn't been told of any other tests he needed." The nurse picked up her phone and called security and alerted them. Amanda had a bad feeling about the whole thing and then remembered that Billy had given her copies of the pictures she had done with the crime artist. She showed the pictures to the nurse and she immediately said "That's him!" She was pointing to the picture of Bryon. Amanda rushed to the nearest payphone and called Billy. This time she was able to get the operator to put her right through. "Billy, the man has grabbed Lee from his hospital room."

"How did that happen?"

"Apparently he dressed up like a Doctor and the nurse's didn't question him removing him. Billy, we have to find him."

"I know Amanda. We'll do everything we can. Why don't you go home and I'll call you as soon as we know anything, okay?"

"Thanks Billy, but I need to do some things before I go home. I'll be in touch."

Amanda hung up the phone and started pacing while thinking. Where would the men go with Lee? What did they intend to do with him? She had to figure it out and she had to do it quickly. Amanda ran to the elevator and headed down to the exit door. She noticed a wheelchair sitting in the parking lot which seemed a little strange. She walked over to it and was checking it out when a car pulled up beside her. The passenger rolled down their window and asked her if she knew any Federal Agents? Amanda gasped when she realized it was the two thugs who had kidnapped Rita. Dennis jumped out of the car and put a rag full of chloroform over her mouth and soon she was passed out. He then threw her into the car beside of Lee and they sped off.

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Lee woke up feeling like he had been hit by a sledgehammer. He knew that someone had drugged him, but why? As his eyes became accustomed to his surroundings, he could barely believe it. It seemed that he had been brought back to the warehouse where he had rescued Rita. What In the world was he doing here? That was when Dennis noticed that Lee was awake and yelled to Bryon.

Bryon walked up to Lee with a sarcastic grin on his face and said "why hello sleeping beauty. Did you enjoy your rest? The drug we gave to you should have had you talking but instead it just made you sleepy so we have been waiting for you to wake up so we could have a nice long talk. Now, let's start with who you are, shall we?"

Lee just glared at the man and said nothing. The man laughed and said "So you think that you can just be stubborn and we will go away. I wonder if we might get more information out of the lady that you were with. Originally, We didn't intend to bring her with us but as we were driving away, we noticed that she had arrived and we thought it might be better if she enjoyed this fun journey with all of us. So after a little bit of discussion with my partner, we decided to go back and get her. Perhaps you would like to watch us get the information out of her?"

"Amanda? She has nothing to do with this? She's an innocent bystander." Lee surged against the ropes that bound him to a chair.

Bryon laughed at Lee's reaction. "Oh so we hit a sore spot did we? Well maybe you are willing to talk now. Where is the woman that you stole from us?"

"I don't know. I was in the hospital when she was taken away."

"Oh come now, I'm not stupid. The agency would have followed normal patterns on what to do with her. My guess is that they have her in a safe house somewhere. I think you know where that would be too. So why don't you tell us and it will save us from having to hurt the pretty woman?"

Lee glared at Bryon and said "There are many places the agency could have taken her. I have no way to know where and Amanda sure wouldn't know."

Bryon realized that Lee might be telling the truth and that maybe he should figure out something else. He wanted to make sure Lee knew he meant business though so he walked over and punched him in the stomach and then punched him hard to the head. Lee was knocked unconscious.

Amanda woke up with a headache in a small little room that had no windows. She had not been tied up as her captors must have thought she was secure without being bound. She quickly took note of her surroundings and discovered that there was only one door. She tried the door handle and found the door unlocked. She wasn't sure if this was a trap or not but decided to risk it. Dennis was not the smartest bulb in the box and had forgotten to lock the door when he left her there. Amanda not only was able to walk out the door but then walked right out of the building. She realized immediately that she had been brought back down to the same warehouse where Rita had been held. Amanda quickly made her way back up the street and headed for the phone booth that she had used earlier and from there, she called Billy. Her call was sent to his office right away this time and he answered "Melrose here"

"Hi Mr. Melrose, it's Amanda Sir. . We need help. I didn't mean to get caught too, I know you wanted me to go home but when I started out to the parking lot, I saw a wheelchair and wondered if it was the one they used so maybe it would have some clue on it. Those bad men drove up while I was checking it over and put something over my nose and mouth and I don't remember anything afterward. I just woke up in the warehouse but I'm sure Lee is there too but I don't know where. They left the door unlocked so I was able to escape but I thought it was a trap and was sure someone was going to stop me but no one came after me at all so I was able to come to this phone booth. Sir, can you send someone right away?"

Billy shook his head in wonderment at this woman who could say so much with one breath. "Mrs. King are you okay?

"Yes I am but they have Lee and I don't know if he is or not. Can you please hurry?"

"You say that they took you to a warehouse? Is that the same one they used before?"

"Yes"

"Okay Amanda, wait right there. I will have my people down there shortly"

"Okay, Sir, please hurry. I don't know whether Lee is okay or not. Oh and Thank you Sir."

Lee had woke up and discovered that he had been left alone so he began working on trying to get free. He had found where the old wooden wall had a lot of jagged pieces on it from age so he was using that to try to fray the ropes enough to get loose. It was working and soon he was able to weaken them enough that he could wiggle out of them. He took a look around the room to try to find something he could use as a weapon. The chair he was sitting in was the only thing that came close though. Lee checked the door to make sure it was locked and was disappointed to see that it was. He could tell it had been dead bolted from the other side. So all he could do was to wait. He wondered if Amanda was okay. Why did she have to come after him? That woman seemed to attract trouble. This is why he liked working alone, he didn't have to worry about anyone else. He really didn't have much to live for so he was never concerned about putting his own life on the line but now he had involved Amanda a second time and he had to worry about trying to get her safely out of this. She was something else though, he mused. He couldn't tell if she was the bravest woman he ever met or just the most stubborn. In either case, once he got them out of this, he was done with her. He was going to convince Billy that it was a bad idea for them to continue to use her. She was a housewife from Arlington after all with 2 small boys. She shouldn't be in this spy business and if she wasn't going to be reasonable than it was up to him to do it for her.

In another part of the building, Bryon went to check on Amanda and found an empty room. He yelled to Dennis who came running from the corner where he had fallen asleep. When he got to the room, he realized he was in trouble.

"You are an idiot! You actually left the door unlocked? You were supposed to be guarding her. Now she can alert someone where we are. Go get the car, we have to get out of here fast!"

Dennis tried to explain "Bryon, I swear I locked the door. She must have figured out a way to unlock it."

"Shut up! Just go get the car before I smack you."

"Okay, Okay. I know I locked it though." Dennis ran to get the car started and ready to go.

Meanwhile Bryon walked back to where Lee was being held. As he opened the door, a chair came down on top of his head knocking him to the floor. Lee grabbed him by his shirt front and hit him full force in the face. Bryon was a big guy though and he was able to bounce back pretty quickly from such a hit. The two continued to exchange blows for a few minutes until Bryon realized it was a losing battle. He knocked Lee down and fled from the room as he slammed and locked the door behind him. When he arrived at the car, Dennis was standing in front of it with a strange expression on his face. Bryon realized that someone had cut all 4 tires and now they had no way to escape. Suddenly several men in overcoats surrounded them and they had no choice but to surrender, still shaking their heads about how all of this went so bad so quickly.


	4. Chapter 4 - The Debriefing

Later back at the agency, Billy was debriefing both Lee and Amanda together.

"So you disobeyed orders and went back inside Amanda?"

"I'm really sorry sir but I was listening outside and I knew they were really mad that I got loose and they were going to run again. I knew if they got away, you would likely never find them. I decided the best thing to do was to slash their tires. I could hear Lee fighting with Bryon so I just hoped that I had enough time."

"Well Mrs. King I can't say that I'm happy that you disobeyed orders but I am happy that everything turned out okay."

"Thank you Sir!"

Francine walked in at that moment and said "Good News. Dennis is singing loudly. He told us who their contact was and our people are on their way right now to pick him up. On top of that, he has given us a lot of information about other things Bryon and him have been involved in including that little arms deal last year with Nigeria. He is so unhappy that they agreed to a kidnapping though. He doesn't know what jinxed them so bad but he indicated that it had something to do with the lady who slashed their tires." Francine looked pointedly at Amanda.

Amanda blushed and said "Glad I could help." and then began giggling. Billy began giggling with her while Lee tried to still look distant though he couldn't help but admire her bravery. Most women wouldn't have stayed with this job after the whole package fiasco but now Amanda had been involved in 2 dangerous situations and was not even an employee. He started thinking that maybe she would fit in on some level at the agency. He shook his head and tried to clear that image out. She was just a housewife from Arlington, she didn't belong in the spy business.

Lee got up at that point and said "Amanda, we still need to go over that background check paperwork, unless of course you changed your mind?"

"No, I still would love to work for the agency."

Billy smiled and said "I think you are going to fit in just fine Amanda."

"Thank you Sir. It was nice to see you again. Hopefully I will hear from you soon."

"I'm sure you will."

Francine stood staring at all the polite talk with an amazed look on her face. Finally she couldn't stand it any longer and said "Why Amanda, how ever will you have time for the agency among all your other exciting activities?"

Amanda's mouth turned into a grin and said "I don't know Francine but if you can do it, I figure I can give it a try." Lee tried to quickly hide his grin. He gently took hold of Amanda's arm and led her out to his desk in the Bullpen.

He showed her all the forms she needed to fill out and asked her if she had any questions.

Amanda said "I do have one question Lee but it isn't about the paperwork."

"Oh? What's that?"

"Do you think Francine colors her hair or is that her natural color? I mean it sure looks like a dye job to me but what do I know? I have never had to dye my hair. If it is a dye job, she does a good job with it. Do you think she would be upset if I asked her because I have a friend who could use a good dye job since her blonde hair is turning white."

Amanda stopped talking and waited for Lee to answer her. He sat staring at her wondering again how she managed to say so much in one breathe. He then suggested "I probably wouldn't ask Francine, she kinda takes all that stuff a little personal."

Amanda nodded her head and agreed. Lee walked her out to her car and Amanda drove home to have some peace before her family arrived home.


	5. Chapter 5 - Tag

**Tag**

Amanda couldn't believe that it was still raining. She was so tired of the rain. She tried to stay cheery all the time but even the most cheerful person soon finds some gloom when it has rained almost non-stop for 5 days. The boys were at school and her Mother had gone to play Bridge with a group of neighbors and Amanda felt cooped up. The house had already been cleaned from top to bottom and was spotless. She had a casserole ready in the fridge to be popped into the oven and Dean wasn't expected back for another couple of days from a business trip. She just needed a new adventure. She had talked to Mr. Melrose about her background paperwork and he had suggested that she come in on Tuesday the following week with it filled out. She had started on it and realized right off that it was going to be a very tedious task since there were hundreds of questions to answer. The bottom line was that Amanda needed a break from the normal. If she got the job working for the agency, that sure would be a huge break from her normal, every day life. She started thinking about how much fun it was going to be going to work every day there. Then it hit her, Lee had never answered her about whether there was a good veggie place in that area. She had nothing better to do, she would drive over and take a look around.

Amanda spent a couple of hours shopping in the area. She not only found a vegetable shop that had wonderful fresh veggies but another area that sold really great looking fruit. In no time she had purchased 2 bags full of the fresh food and couldn't wait to prepare part of it for dinner that night. She stepped back outside and had to put her umbrella back up because the rain was still coming down steadily. Trying to juggle two bags while holding up an umbrella was no easy feat. Thankfully her car wasn't parked too far away. She began walking and was just nearing her car when one of the bags ripped from being saturated in the rain. She saw her melons begin rolling down the street and as she tried to stop them, the other bag fell from her hands and then she tripped over one of the loose melons and fell down. Right at that exact moment, she heard someone laughing at her. She would have known that laugh anywhere. She looked up to find Lee sitting in a cab looking down at her with a huge grin on his face.

She couldn't help but join in the laughter cause she felt foolish sitting in the middle of the sidewalk with her bag of vegetables and fruits lying all around. Lee jumped out of the cab and began helping her pick everything up. He piled it all into the cab since the bags were in no shape to carry it. He then helped her into the back seat.

"What are you doing..." they both started to say at once and that brought more laughter from them.

Lee started again first "Amanda what are you doing down here?"

"Aw, well I was a bit bored and since you didn't tell me if there was a good vegetable man, I had to come find out for myself. What are you doing in this cab? Are you already on another case?"

"Yes Amanda, but I can't tell you anything about it. It is a need to know situation. Anyway, where is your car?"

Amanda directed him to her car and was so happy that he had arrived just in time to save the day for her. As he pulled up to her car, she told him that she was thankful he had showed up when he did. He smiled and said he was glad to help. He helped her out of the cab and the two of them loaded her purchases into her car. After they were done, they stood together feeling a bit awkward while Amanda held her umbrella over them both. Finally Amanda broke the silence "This reminds me of a joke my son Jamie told me the other day, do you want to hear it?"

"Sure"

"Well remember, he is only 8"

"okay, I'm waiting" Lee said impatiently.

Amanda smiled as she said "The next time someone asks you to call them a cab, say "You're a Cab back to them. Do you get it?"

Lee shook his head and said "yeah, I get it. I think you hang around children too much Amanda."

"Probably. Okay, well I should get home and begin dinner before Mother and the boys get home."

"Well maybe I'll see you again and maybe I won't. Goodbye Amanda"

"Goodbye Lee" Amanda smiled to herself knowing that she would be back next week to drop off the background paperwork. She would definitely be seeing more of Lee Stetson. She was sure of it.


End file.
